High School Daze
by abadapple
Summary: Roderich: A freshman at an International Private High School is making new friends, enemies, and lovers? Going through high school has more unexpected twists and turns than he thought, especially when one has an unruly roommate! Gilbert: Also a freshman, is hurtling through his high school experiences. But can't seem to take his mind off a certain someone! Silly high school boys!
1. Chapter 1: Roderich's problem

Chapter one: Roderich's problem

Throughout the student council meeting, Roderich felt uncomfortable. In fact, the whole day he had been feeling uncomfortable though he had yet to rightly place what it was. Shifting in his seat slightly, he never took his eyes off of the young man who was speaking next to him, explaining something to the rest of the council. Looking as though he was paying attention, in actuality, Roderich was trying to pinpoint why he felt uncomfortable. _Could it have been what he ate for breakfast? No it had nothing to do with his digestive tract…maybe-_

"Any thoughts Secretary?" interjected the Student Council President. His eyes cleared up, letting him fully focus on the young man next to him; blonde hair smoothed back on square forehead, tall and athletic looking, _Ludwig could have been a young underwear model_ thought Roderich, jealously wincing inwardly at the thought.

"Oh. I think it's fine, I suppose." He said without thought. Ludwig stared at him in slight annoyance but mostly amusement.

"So you think it's fine that more than half of the homeroom classes have yet to decide on what they plan to do for the School Festival?" Rodrich's ears turned red as chuckles echoed throughout the small classroom.

"I'm sorry…" he mumbled looking down at the neatly stacked papers in front of him and taking it upon himself to once again shuffle them neatly.

"Next time pay more attention, will you?" Ludwig said with a soft baritone chuckle, "Okay, I think that's enough for today, thanks for everyone's hard work!" this time addressing the rest of the council members.

Voices soon bounced off each other, talking about plans for the weekend or whatever new pop song happened to have caught their eye that day, Roderich barely acknowledged anyone else as he stiffly picked up his shoulder bag and walked to the door. Feeling a warm hand on his shoulder he turned around to see Ludwig standing over him, this time the other blushing a slight pink. Cocking an eyebrow, Roderich waited for the young man to say something only to see him stammering, eyes cast downwards.

"Y-you have a…erm", coughing harshly, Ludwig blushed slightly deeper, "A rather large hole in the back of your pants." He said firmly before turning away. Roderich grabbed at the seat of his pants _oh god _was all he thought as he rushed down the hall, whispers falling on deaf ears as he went to find the nearest mens room.

Roderich sighed, craning his neck over his shoulder to look at the bathroom mirror; he glared at the gaping hole in his school trousers. _Right on my…my ass _He thought wistfully, _no wonder I felt so uncomfortable. _Unbuttoning his navy cardigan he faintly recalled feeling his pants catching on something when he sat down in the dining hall but must have forgot about it once getting up for his first class. Wrapping the garment around his waist he walked briskly to the Boys' dormitory, every so often looking around; making sure no one noticed his ruined pants, even with the cardigan over it.

Gingerly taking off his pants, his eyes darting to the locked door, he sat down on his bed heaving yet another sigh. Roderich tensed up at the sound of a soft knock,

"Who is it?" he called out still inspecting his pants.

"It's me." a slightly muted feminine voice came through the door. He opened the door though still hid slightly behind, motioning the petite brunette standing at his door inside. It only took a moment for her to start laughing, it wasn't every day that one got to see the normally uptight Roderich in his underwear, and the girl reveled in the sight.

"Oh shush, and help me." He said exasperatedly, pulling out a wooden chair for her. "Even in your underpants you are still a gentlemen" she teased, taking a seat, "Ludwig called me out in the North Hallway, mumbling something about your pants, so I brought a present for you…" she said digging through her back pack, handing over a small sewing kit. Gratefully taking it, he shot a sheepish smile at the girl in front of him before sitting back down on the bed. Roderich always felt at ease around Elizabeta, around so many unfamiliar people during their first year at this private high school, Elizabeta was his anchor. They had known each other since childhood. Living near the Hungarian embassy had its perks; Elizabeta was the only daughter of a prominent diplomat and often came with her parents on visits to all the embassies during time off from school. She often brought him small presents from afar, pounding on his door the first chance she could get away from her parents. They spent hours together causing mischief, something that Roderich never did without her by his side. Smiling at the thought, he pushed the needle through the pants fabric. "Remember the time we ran through your neighbor's garden and your foot went right through a rotted pumpkin?" she blurted out, almost as if he was reading his mind. They laughed, causing him to prick his finger, cursing, he watched as a small bubble of blood formed on his thumb. "I'm always saving you, aren't I?" she chuckled, bringing out a Band-Aid and handing it to him. He put it on, and quickly resumed his work. While finishing up his pants they talked jovially into the early evening.

"Not the best sight. But it certainly looks better than before" he grumbled as Elizabeta looked over his shoulder at his handiwork.

"I don't know it's better than I could do…" she chirped, ruffling his hair lightly. Grunting, he smoothed his hair back down as he stood up. Hearing the dinner bell, they left the boys' dormitory; being prompted by Elizabeta's growling stomach. Ludwig nodded in their direction as they joined him in their usual place at one of the many long dining tables. As always, Ludwig was using a knife and fork even though tonight was hamburgers and French fries. Something about German dining customs, Roderich recalled Ludwig explaining during the first time they had pizza in the dining hall. Ludwig, Elizabeta, and Roderich conversed throughout dinner; Elizabeta continuously poking light jokes about Roderich's "hole", Ludwig gruffly laughing but refraining from speech, and Roderich was trying to maintain order.

Over the weeks at school, Roderich had become accustomed to hearing vastly different languages intermixing loudly across the tables; this private schools main reason for being was to bring students from all countries together, an attempt by the UN to bring about international understanding through the next generation. So far, it has been a success and the private school was considered one of the best places for schooling after being established 20 years ago. Talks of expanding to a college were mere blueprints on the table but the upcoming School Festival could change all that. The main topic in the dining hall was of plans for the festivities that were supposed to happen in a few weeks. This gave Roderich a continuous headache, seeing that things were barely ready and there was so much left to do. The other thing that seemed to be hurting his brain was-

"Yo! Miss me Specs?" someone yelled right into his ear as he felt an unnerving pinch to his shoulder.

Wincing, Roderich turned to look at his roommate. The albino boy loomed over him, cackling loudly, drawing attention to himself as always. Brushing his ill-mannered hand off, Roderich pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose with the other, letting his focus rest on the two young men behind his roommate. Antonio he knew fairly well, but this Francis guy was a complete stranger, and someone he always felt slightly uncomfortable being with. Both young men were always hanging around his roommate, it had become sort of a nuisance, especially when they all barged into Roderich's room unannounced; settling wherever they could find, disturbing his studies or sleep as they opened smuggled in bottles of beer, played video games, or did whatever the hell those three wanted to do, no matter what time of the day or night it was.

"What do you want, Gilbert?" he sighed looking wearily at his roommate again.

"Nothing, just wanted to talk with my buddy! I can tell that you missed my awesome self, it's kind of obvious" the young man in front of him chuckled, bumping hips with Roderich to squeeze in between him and Ludwig. Gilbert had taken to using a fine amount of slang around practically everyone. Complete with his over the top confident attitude, it had become quite an annoyance to both Roderich and Gilbert's teachers who Roderich sympathized with for having to put up with such an ass. "Yo, bro!" was all Gilbert greeted his younger brother with before turning to practically suck in Roderich's supper. With a look of disgust, Roderich slapped Gilbert's hands away from his dwindling pile of French fries.

"Hands off! Those aren't yours." prompting yet another attack on his fries. Roderich had been surprised to find out Ludwig and Gilbert were brothers, even more surprised to find that Ludwig was younger by a year, having joined high school early due to skipping a grade. Complete opposites, Ludwig was both the smart and mature one of the pair, something which Gilbert endlessly teased him about.

Gilbert looked gleefully at Roderich before snatching one last fry from him, winking towards Elizabeta, softly whacking Ludwig over the head, and running off with his friends down the dining hall. Scowling, Elizabeta shot a look of sympathy to Roderich, "I don't know how you can stand that jerk. Sorry Luddy." She said quickly to Ludwig then turned back to her food. All three continued as if nothing had happened, it was something of a normal occurrence for Gilbert and his friends to interrupt whatever they were doing. During a dry spell of conversation, Roderich looked uncharacteristically mischievous, half teasingly half curious he said in hushed tones

"You know, I swear, Gilbert is making eyes at you. Romance blossoming perhaps?" Snorting incredulously at the thought.

"Oh please, he flirts with anything that has a pulse. I swear, sometimes he even flirts with you!" At this, everyone broke out in laughter and the conversation was dismissed.

Elizabeta waved back at the table where Ludwig and Roderich still sat, discussing plans for the School Festival. Roderich had met Ludwig during the first Student Council meeting surprised that the President was a first year like himself, but even then he could see why he was picked; studious and with a serious demeanor, he fit the image well. They became fast friends, and soon Ludwig joined him and Elizabeta during meals and whatnot. It wasn't until Gilbert dragged him into their dorm room one day that he found out they were brothers. Ludwig was fairly reserved about information regarding anything in his past; it had taken a while before he opened up, divulging that both boys came from Germany but due to a divorce between their parents, Gilbert had moved to Canada with their father around their early teens. The fact that both got into the same school was somewhat of a mystery, but being back with his brother seemed just like old times Ludwig said with a small smile once.

"Do you have romantic intentions towards Elizabeta?" Roderich sat there, momentarily stunned. He knew Ludwig was direct but this was somewhat uncharacteristic. Unfortunately, it wasn't only himself that heard the question; the dining hall had suffered a moment of silence just when Ludwig had blurted out. Roderich shifted slightly, ears turning a light pink, as people slowly turned away from the source of the loud noise to start talking again. Ludwig ducked his chin in apology and said in lower tones.

"Do you?" Sighing, Roderich gave a look of pity to the German student, "Elizabeta hasn't told you yet?" he asked, directly looking into the German's eyes. Seeing the look of confusion played over Ludwig's face, he looked around again before leaning closer to him, "I'm gay, and I thought Elizabeta would have told you by now or someone else really. It's not a well-known fact since I normally don't tell everyone what I do sexually or otherwise but it's not a big secret." Ludwig's eyes widened in surprise and what looked like a slight blush blossomed on his face.

"I-I'm sorry, fo-forgive me" he stumbled awkwardly causing Roderich to give him a small pat on the knee.

"Not a real issue, but I do hope you keep this information to yourself for the most part?" Ludwig almost winced at Roderich's touch before nodding in agreement to Roderich.

"I should go." He said, picking up his tray to leave, "Oh. And Ludwig?" the boy turned to look at him again, looking almost uncomfortable, "Please don't tell Gilbert. I don't want any more reasons for us to fight." He said imploringly. Another nod from Ludwig, Roderich turned to go back to the boys' dormitory. It would be a long night of studying and planning for the School Festival.


	2. Chapter 2: Gilbert's problem

Chapter two: Gilbert's Problem

Gilbert's brows furrowed in concentration, he could barely make out what Roderich was saying to his brother but he definitely heard the question Ludwig had so loudly asked. It wasn't the meal that had Gilbert's stomach in knots but he still cursed in regret at eating that second burger.

"Ay, come on Gil, we don't have all night!" a mellow voice rang out; it's owners warm brown hand thumping his shoulder. Gilbert squinted his eyes at the sight of his dark haired roommate leaning in to tell his brother something in private. _Probably saying that he had the hots for that brown haired chick…_He turned fully to face his friends.

"Yeah, yeah I know…whatever it's not like that club is going to disappear or something!"

Throwing away the memory of his roommate and brother whispering to one another, he followed his friends out of the dining hall. While walking back to the boys dormitory he still felt uneasy, almost to the point that whenever Francis pointed out another of the many beautiful senior girls he was unresponsive. Antonio and Francis shot each other curious glances but continued to chatter aimlessly as Gilbert lagged behind. Ever since they were first introduced he couldn't shake this weird feeling about his roommate. He especially lost his appetite whenever he saw him and that girl acting all "lovey-dovey" together. Thinking it was because he had some stupid high school crush on that girl he made it a point to interrupt whatever those two were doing whenever he had the chance. _Whatever, her loss for not realizing how awesome I am compared to that…that loser!_ Snorting, he tried to pay attention to Francis who was getting hyped up about this new club they were planning to sneak into that night.

Gilbert had met both Antonio and Francis during their freshman orientation when they were put in the same "bonding" group. Once they all decided that any type of forced bonding was rather boring they snuck away to a nearby bar that reportedly didn't check I.D. And proceeded to get roaring drunk and missing the rest of the orientation for that day. Since then, they had remained inseparable and whenever someone was looking for one of the group, they only had to look for the other two.

"No fucking way!" he said before letting out a stream of cuss-words under his breath he dug around in his pockets. "I think I left my card key in your room Francis." He craned his head up to look at his friends who were giving him sympathetic looks.

Gilbert had since learned that Francis came from a well off family. His father dealt in a famous cookware line of who's main leisurely activities were acquiring new lovers and business associates. Francis had remarked onetime that there were numerous lovers of his fathers that had also taken a fancy to him. Gilbert believed him. Francis may have been young but he was strikingly good looking, with his slightly wavy blonde hair and elegant demeanor he attracted a good amount of suitors of both sexes.

"No problema amigo, we can hit Francis' room before we party. Chill out!" said Antonio cheerfully as he pulled out his own card before swiping them into the dormitory. Gilbert shot a grateful look at Antonio before following both men in.

Antonio was also blessed by good looks, with a slightly thicker build that only thinly veiled his muscular body. When not at school or out partying, he and Gilbert would often go out to the school's football field to kick some ball with Francis cheering from the sidelines. Born to old blood, his family's wealth spanned several generations; though Gilbert didn't know what they specialized in. He had the sneaking suspicion that Antonio's family didn't deal in legal trade but he didn't really care. Antonio was warm and kept the trio glued together whenever Gilbert and Francis fell on rough spots.

"Mon Cher, you've been acting so tense lately, do I need to give you a back massage?" Francis cooed, giving a playful squeeze to Gilbert's right shoulder causing him to squirm. "Maybe it has to do with a certain roommate and certain roommate's girlfriend= hm?" Antonio piped up= bumping Gilbert's left shoulder before they all stopped in front of Francis' doorway.

"Cut it out, it's nothing like that. That dude just rubs me the wrong way with his 'do this! don't do that!' bull shit and she's not his girlfriend!" he sputtered as he flopped down at his friend's desk.

"Oh la la! Gilbert has a jealous streak in him." Was all Francis replied before handing Gilbert his card which had been laying on the floor next to a pile of dirty laundry. It was a huge debate amongst them whether Francis had more clothes than the average girl, and the pile of offending soiled clothes didn't even seem to leave a dent in his bursting closet. Smirking, Gilbert lazily picked through Francis's school things that were laying on the desk, including a large folder with a red heart drawn on it, which caught his eye. Though he had been rummaging in his closet for something flashy to wear, Francis squealed like a girl when he saw the albino looking into the special folder. "Don't touch that!" he yelled, but it was too late by the look of Gilbert's shocked face.

"Wha-what the hell Francis?" was all Gilbert managed to say as he pulled out a large photo. The perpetrator didn't even snatch it away, instead looking almost aloof.

"What? Can't a guy appreciate true beauty every now and then?" he said, before flipping his hair and turning back to the closet. The photo was slightly grainy, but unmistakably Roderich as he talked to some students. Pulling out another photo, this time much closer, with Roderich standing in front of a class room of students. Another, this time Roderich was seen laughing with the brown haired girl and his brother in front of the school fountain. There were countless others, mostly from far away and out of focus, except for the last one which Gilbert paused to look at closely. It was a photo of Roderich, standing once again at the fountain but this time with a close up of his face. The sun was setting in the picture, giving his pale skin a slight glow. For once Francis had managed to take a decent photo, as Gilbert could even see Roderich's eyebrows furrowed in concentration as he looked down to what was his hands. It looked like a stack of paper; in fact it was sheets of music as the bars were fairly legible to see. For some reason, the photo made Gilbert feel calmer and his breathing slowed as he continued to appreciate the photo.

Snapping back to the reality of what these photos meant, he stuffed them into the backpack he had been carrying. "Hey! Those are mine! Take some of your own!" Francis whined hip cocked to one side as he admired himself in a mirror.

"It's bad enough that you stalk him on Facebook Francis, take it easy." Antonio said before going back to the game he was playing on his cell phone.

"Look, I don't know why you were taking these photos, but you should probably stay away from Roderich from now on. Whatever you got going on is pretty sick dude." Gilbert stuttered, unsure of even his own words.

"Oh? _Roderich _is it? Whatever happened to his proper name of Specs? Maybe I was wrong to think that it was the girl you were after hmm?" Francis flung his arms over Gilbert, rubbing his cheek against the albino's. Pecking him on the cheek, Francis whispered huskily in his ear, "Maybe I can give you a preview of how real men make love mon cheri". Gilbert shoved him off, as Francis laughed.

"Ew! I'm not into dudes, that's gross!" the albino shouted, wiping the left over spittle from the kiss. Feeling how hot his face was, he turned away from the two to look out the window. The view overlooked the very fountain where Roderich had stood in the photo and Gil could feel his stomach clenching. _I definitely shouldn't have eaten those burgers_, pressing his stomach; he felt a wave of nausea roll over him.

Though Francis had been teasing him earlier, he flashed a look of concern upon seeing his friend turn an abnormal shade of white. "You are looking whiter than usual amigo, what's up?" Antonio asked, giving a hardy pat on the back to Gilbert, causing the albino to clench his sides. The moan that issued from the curled over Gilbert, caused both friends to jump to his side. They quickly ushered him to the bathroom at the insistence of Francis who kept repeating something about the carpet.

Gilbert felt weak after coming out of the bathroom. Francis had left to go get a bottle of water but Antonio had gone as far as standing outside the stall as he had wretched his gut out. Gilbert stumbled with Francis arriving just in time to catch him, handing him the bottle of water. The blond haired boys eyes watered.

"I am sorry mon cher, I shouldn't have made fun of you like that with you in such a fragile state. Forgive me." Rolling his eyes, Gilbert let out a small laugh before squeezing his friends supporting shoulder.

"It's fine but next time, hide your unmentionables better". The Frenchman merely winked in response before shifting his weight to better support his sick friend. Gilbert's friends led him down the hallway to the elevator. "I'm fine now dudes, thanks. You guys should go ahead; I don't want to ruin your evening. I'm going to take it easy tonight…" the albino mumbled as he pressed the button for his floor. Francis and Antonio took a bit more convincing before they finally let him close the elevator doors. Slumping against the wall, Gilbert bit his lip.

_What the hell am I going to do once I get to my room? I can't get rid of the pictures until Specs is gone from the dorm which is like, never. And while I'm at it, shut up emotions WTF. _The albino clutched his stomach once again even though he knew deep down inside it was his head in knots and not his gut. Not knowing whether it was the pictures or the interaction at dinner, Gilbert let out a low groan. The gentle ding of the elevator door alerted Gilbert to the fact that he was on full public display in front of no other than Arthur Kirkland.

Gilbert vaguely knew Arthur as his homeroom's Class Representative and considered him a pain in the ass. Arthur felt the same way about Gilbert as well, and he knew it. The English boy continuously talked to him in a condescending tone whenever they had to interact with each other. Cocking one of his well-known bushy eyebrows, Arthur only smirked as he rudely brushed past the albino on his way into the elevator. Gilbert didn't even give it a second thought to run his hand down every single elevator button before leaving, earning him a rude hand gesture from the Brit. _At least that's something to laugh about, what a stupid ass, _Gilbert thought as he pushed his dorm door open.

"What was that ass doing on our floor? He's not even on this side of the dormitory." Gilbert growled before throwing his back pack to the side of his desk and diving onto his bed. Roderich merely sniffed and pushed his glasses higher on the bridge of his nose before going back to the papers sitting on his desk. "Hello to you, too. And if by 'ass' you meant Arthur, he was here to talk about your guys' homeroom plans for the School Festival. I hope you like tea, because your homeroom is going to be a British tea room." At this Gilbert groaned audibly, looking pathetic as he fumbled to take off his shoes before rolling under the slate gray comforter of his bed. Roderich's tone of voice ballooned in amusement, "Actually, Arthur volunteered you as one of the servers for the tea room, I will have to come and see that".

A silence blanketed the room as his roommate read some papers. Gilbert felt another wave of nausea run down his stomach, curling into the fetal position, he let out a loud groan. It only took a moment before Roderich was by his side, peering into his face and reaching out to feel his forehead. This unexpected nurturing side of his roommate caused the albino to recoil farther into his covers. The moment of tenderness broke as Roderich's face went from a look of concern to sudden coolness. Immediately regretting his act of suspicion, Gilbert reached out to catch his roommates wrist as he had quickly turned around to go back to his desk. "I-I'm sorry. I'm…just not feeling myself today." He mumbled, red eyes begging in apology.

Roderich only paused briefly before kneeling again at his roommate's side, a slight sigh of exasperation escaping his pursed lips. Taking his long tapered fingers to mold to the albino's forehead, he felt his temperature noting how clammy the skin was despite his flushed look. Clucking like a brooding mother hen, Roderich went back to his desk, opening up various drawers before finding a small red medical kit.

The bed creaked as Roderich lowered himself down at the foot of the bed. Unzipping the medical kit, he quickly found a cool patch and applied it to the albino's forehead. "I think it's just a case of an upset stomach, just get rest and drink fluids." Roderich said in his most serious tone. Gilbert almost laughed before doubling down in pain again.

"Thank you Dr. Specs" he teased before laying his head back down onto the pillow. The dark haired boy only lifted a corner of his mouth in a smile before taking his medical pack back to its rightful place.

Feeling weak, Gilbert could barely keep his eyes open. _That's the first encounter I've had with that four eyes that hasn't been hostile. _ He thought to himself as he started to doze off. _ It's…actually…kind of…nice._ Sleep over took him, his head falling deeper into the pillow, delicately veined eyelids fluttering as his mind filled with foggy images before completely blacking out.


End file.
